Debt limit is wrong target

President Barack Obama has said repeatedly he will not negotiate with Republicans over raising the federal government's borrowing limit in exchange for deep budget cuts.

Whether the president's threat is an idle one or not, Republicans have no need to call him on it.

Why? Because Republicans have drawn their own line in the sand. And it is a much more defensible one than the president has drawn over raising the debt limit, something that come hell or high water needs to be done in a couple months.

Passage of the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 brought the country back from momentarily going over the fiscal cliff, but it didn't end the possibility of another potential suicide run when it comes time to raise the debt ceiling or shut down the government.

This means that in a couple months, when federal borrowing maxes out, Republicans and Democrats will be back at it with the president leading the charge for the party of FDR.

For Republicans, it appears Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has taken up the cause on behalf of his party and beleaguered taxpayers.

During an appearance on ABC's “This Week” he declared “(T) he tax issue is finished, over, completed.”

He continued: “Now the question is, what are we going to do about the biggest problem confronting our country and our future? And that's our spending addiction. It's time to confront it. ”

Procedurally, the ability of Republicans to make the president do just that lies in the GOP's majority in the House and most likely enough support from some fiscally conservative Democrats to prevent passage of any significant tax increase measures in the Senate.

Potentially, this leaves the president howling in the wind with no one listening after the American Taxpayer Relief Act raised taxes on nearly everyone, not just the wealthy. That is if Republicans don't make the mistake of fighting over raising the federal debt limit.

So far Democrats have easily turned the debt limit debate against Republicans by recalling the nightmarish federal shutdown which occurred under then-Republican Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich in the 1990s. In addition, the argument against raising the debt limit is a weak one. It is Congress — comprised of both Democrats and Republicans — which is responsible for deficit spending. It is they who let the horse out of the barn — with the approval of the White Houses past and present.

What's more, voters understand that in the end refusing to raise the debt limit is only symbolic. When all is said and done, it has to be done. Yet, shutting down the government will have real — not symbolic — consequences.

So, Republicans have two battle plans from which to choose.

Plan A, which has won favor with the conservative wing of the party, will have the GOP going to the mattress over raising the debt ceiling and possibly shutting down the government. Plan B, will have the Republicans truly protecting the working man and woman from higher taxes, not offering another American Taxpayer Relief Act loaded with perks for special interests and little to no tax relief.